Media discourse as symbolic violence: Chronic stress and the erosion of psychological resilience

Abstract In contemporary societies, media discourse functions not merely as a mechanism for information transmission but as a powerful system that constructs social reality and shapes individuals' cognitive and emotional processes. The persistent emphasis on crises, threats, and uncertainty in media narratives has increasingly contributed to the formation of a perception of a precarious and unstable world. These effects often operate invisibly, leading individuals to internalize mediated representations without critical reflection. This process can be conceptualized through Pierre Bourdieu's notion of symbolic violence, which refers to forms of domination that are exercised through meaning-making systems and accepted as legitimate by those subjected to them. Within this framework, media discourse emerges as a symbolic field of power that subtly regulates perception and experience. From a psychological perspective, Richard Lazarus's cognitive appraisal theory provides a crucial explanatory lens, suggesting that stress arises not from external events themselves but from how individuals interpret and evaluate those events. Continuous exposure to threat-oriented media discourse restructures cognitive appraisal processes, transforming neutral or ambiguous situations into perceived threats. Over time, this leads to chronic stress and the gradual erosion of psychological resilience. This study offers a theoretical and conceptual analysis of how symbolic violence embedded in media discourse contributes to chronic stress and undermines resilience, highlighting the need for an interdisciplinary understanding of media, cognition, and psychological well-being.